Notes: As built Wroxall Station had a single platform on the
up side of the line. In 1925 the Southern Railway increased the
line capacity on the Ryde - Ventnor route. At Wroxall this included
a new crossing loop and down side platform with a small waiting
shelter. A single siding served a small goods yard on the other
side of the Castle Road overbridge.

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE ISLE OF
WIGHT RAILWAY
After several failed attempts to build a railway to Ventnor, a
Bill was proposed by the Isle of Wight Railway in 1860 for a line
from Ryde to Ventnor. An Act was passed authorising the building
of the line and by 1864 the line had reached Shanklin but following
objections from landowners the intended route through Luccombe
and Bonchurch was dropped in favour of a new route from the north
passing through Wroxall. This route required the construction
of a 1312 yard tunnel under St. Boniface Down; the line eventually
reached Ventnor in 1866.

From the opening the line was well used losing little traffic
to the Isle of Wight Central Railway who opened their branch from
Merstone - Ventnor Town in 1900. Ventnor Town was in fact located
a mile west of the town centre and was never well used and although
the IWR station was also inconveniently sited high above the town
it provided a faster and therefore more poplar route from Ryde.

Since the 17th C there has been various schemes to drain and
reclaim Brading Marshes, none of these had been successful until
the Brading Harbour Improvements and Railway Company obtained
powers in 1874 to construct a 2 1/2 mile railway from the IWR
at Brading to Bembridge across the reclaimed land. The scheme
took eight years to complete, opening on 27th May 1882. From the
outset the service was operated by the Isle of Wight Railway who
bought the line outright for £430 on 2nd August 1898. The
line initially proved very popular and was especially busy on
summer weekends.

All the islands railways were absorbed into the Southern Railway
in the 1923 grouping and the service was soon upgraded with the
introduction of new rolling stock and a revised timetable that
included some through running between the various lines. The Southern
Railway itself became part of the Southern Region of British Railways
after nationalisation in 1948 and initially there were few changes.
However this was short lived; improved bus services and the popularity
of the motor car soon and holidays abroad led to dwindling passenger
numbers. Merstone - Ventnor was the first line to close in 1952
leaving the IWR as the only route serving the town. The following
year the Bembridge branch closed.

During the early 1960s it was decided to replace the remaining
aging Island locomotives but the end steam operation in favour
of electric, put paid to the idea. Under the Beeching proposals
the remaining island lines were scheduled for closure apart from
a 1.2 mile section of the IWR from Ryde Pier Head - St. Johns
Road. It was hoped however that a further section of the line
as far as Shanklin could also be reprieved and in 1965 the Minister
of Transport announced that line between Ryde Pier Head - Shanklin
should remain open and be modernised. The remaining section of
the line between Shanklin and Ventnor closed on the 18th April
1966.

British Railways decided that the line should be electrified
and operated by ex-London Transport tube stock to overcome the
problem of continuing to use the substandard tunnel at Ryde. 43
redundant tube cars were imported and the remaining steam service
between Ryde Pier Head and St. Johns Road was suspended at the
end of 1966 to allow the final stages of the third rail electrification
to take place. The tube trains were brought across on the car-ferry
with the passenger service reinstated on 20 March 1967. The line
is still operated by ex-tube stock as the Island
Line.

Since closure there have been numerous proposals to reopen the
line from Shanklin to Wroxall and Ventnor, but none of these plans
seem likely to come to fruition. Both stations have been demolished
and the sites redeveloped. Much of the Bembridge branch has been
incorporated into one of the island's cycleways

Wroxall station looking north-east in June 1961 as a Ventnor train is about to depart.

'Ningwood' takes
the passing loop around 'Bembridge' at Wroxall station in May 1964

Wroxall station looking south-east c.1965
Photo by Bill RawlinsonWroxall Station in
March 1968 - the Station Hotel can be seen behind the main station building
with the Castle Road overbridge in the background.
Photo by Nick Catford

Wroxall station
in August 1968
Photo by Ted Burgess

Wroxall station
looking north-west in September 1970
Photo by John Hulse

Wroxall station in June 2005 - the station has been completely cleared
away but the adjacent Station Hotel still stands having been converted
into residential units. The road overbridge can be
seen in the background.
Photo by Nick Catford